>> reporter: blackedut n jersey utility customer amy owens says power outages used to be, if not fun, a bit romantic. that is, the first time she lost her power for more than a week. >> one year ago was our anniversary storm. we were without power on this block for eight days. >> reporter: owens says she's starting to think of megastorms, and the ensuing blackouts, as the new normal. she's a real estate agent, and she says she's encouraging her clients to make provisions for future power outages. >> i think people will star pulgt t 10 to $15,000 into a generation system so that never's never without power. so they don't have to depend on pse & g or the other carriers. >> reporter: psg&e started work on the downed lines near her house today. >> brown: president obama will go to new york on thursday to see firsthand the recovery efforts there. he visited hard-hit areas along new jersey's coastline last week. >> woodruff: and to the analysis of shields and brooks. that's syndicated columnist mark shields and "new york times" columnist david brooks. welcome, gentlemen, we've seen you earl